Bolton Wanderers pulled off a first-half comeback against Stoke City to boost their chances of Premier League survival this afternoon.
The first chance of the match came after seven minutes when Ricardo Fuller skipped past Dedryck Boyata and fired in a low shot that forced a smart save from Adam Bogdan.
The hosts then had two more chances in the space of as many minutes. Peter Crouch's floating shot missed by inches before Matthew Etherington was denied by a theatrical dive from Bogdan.
The flurry of chances didn't stop there, however, and just one minute later Stoke took the lead. An Etherington ball into the box seemed to be cut out by Bogdan before Jonathan Walters bundled the keeper and the ball into the back of the net.
Despite Bogdan's desperate pleas for a foul to be awarded, referee Chris Foy allowed the goal to stand in what will prove to be a highly controversial decision if Bolton end up getting relegated.
The visitors almost replied immediately when Thomas Sorensen spilt a Martin Petrov cross, but Robert Huth was alert enough to beat Chris Eagles to the rebound.
Walters then came close again for the Potters before Kevin Davies almost equalised for Bolton with a looping header that hit the crossbar.
Ivan Klasnic was the next to test the Stoke goal, but his fierce effort was parried round the post by Sorensen.
Wanderers did get the equaliser five minutes before half-time, and it came through a stroke of luck. A long ball from Bogdan resulted in an attempted clearance by Huth, only for the ball to rebound off Mark Davies's leg and into the net.
There was one final twist in a remarkable half as Bolton took the lead through another freak goal. This time it was Kevin Davies who provided it from near the right touchline as his cross-cum-shot found the top corner.
As it stands, Bolton will stay in the Premier League at the expense of Queens Park Rangers, but anything other than a win will result in them being relegated.
Barney Corkhill
